MNT-Halan completes acquisition of
Advans Pakistan Microfinance Bank Ltd
The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has granted
approval for the acquisition of Advans Pakistan Microfinance Bank Limited by
MNT-Halan Pak B.V., a holding company formed by a Dutch-Egyptian financial
conglomerate.
The share purchase agreement between the entities was
finalized in August 2023, with subsequent approval from the State Bank of
Pakistan (SBP) in October 2023. However, the acquisition required clearance
from the CCP along with the fulfillment of certain conditions precedent before
becoming official.
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leading fintech player to acquire operations of Advans Microfinance Bank
MNT-Halan Pak B.V., headquartered in the Netherlands,
operates subsidiaries in Pakistan under the banners of Halan Wallet (Private)
Limited and Halan Finance Limited. The conglomerate is supported by Dutch microlending
firm MNT and Egyptian fintech startup Halan, which merged through a share swap
arrangement in 2021 to form MNT-Halan, aiming to enhance digital transactions
in lending and payments sectors.
Meanwhile, Advans Pakistan Microfinance Bank Limited is a
publicly listed company operating in Pakistan's microfinance banking sector. It
serves as the Pakistan arm of the Advans group, a prominent international
microfinance entity operating across nine developing nations.
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Advans Pakistan Microfinance Bank Limited (APMBL) obtained a
license from the State Bank of Pakistan on June 28, 2012, to function as a
microfinance bank in Sindh province. The bank's primary objective is to extend
microfinance banking services to the impoverished and underserved demographics,
aligning with the Microfinance Institutions Ordinance, 2001.
The bank's financial performance has been inconsistent in
Pakistan's limited microfinance market. Advans reported a loss of Rs 102
million in 2022 and a more substantial loss of Rs 256 million in 2023,
following a meager profit of Rs 53.8 million in 2021. As of September 2023,
Advans Pakistan had accumulated losses amounting to Rs 1.3 billion, rendering
it a challenging venture for the Advans group internationally.
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The acquisition involves the complete acquisition of Advans
Pakistan Microfinance Bank Limited from Advans S.A SICAR, a Luxembourg-based
financial services entity. Following a comprehensive review of the merger
application, the CCP determined no market overlaps between the merging entities,
ensuring post-merger market stability.
This approval bears significant implications for Pakistan's
microfinance banking sector, pivotal in the nation's financial inclusion
endeavors. According to the World Bank, the sector serves 76% of all borrowers
within the financial landscape and contributes to approximately one-third of
all outstanding agricultural advances.
Source: Profit Pakistan